Power converter with improved lead frame arrangement including stand-up portion

ABSTRACT

In a semiconductor device, a lead frame is adhered to a base substrate for heat dissipation via an insulating layer, and an outward guided terminal portion is formed by perpendicularly upwardly bending an end of the lead frame after the mounting of one or more of power semiconductor elements on the lead frame. A recessed portion is formed beforehand in a portion of the lead frame to be bent, and it is ensured that the lead frame does not adhere to the surface of the base substrate in this recessed portion when the lead frame is adhered to the base substrate via the insulating layer before the bending of the lead frame. By virtue of this structure, manufacturing is simplified and manufacturing costs are reduced.

This is a continuation of application Ser. No. 09/908,564, filed Jul.20, 2001 U.S. Pat. No. 6,541,851, the entire disclosure of which ishereby incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a semiconductor device in which one ormore of power semiconductor elements is/are mounted on a lead frame andthen this assembly is insertionally molded with a resin and,particularly, to a semiconductor device in which a portion of the leadframe serving as an outward guided terminal stands up generallyperpendicularly from the lead frame.

In semiconductor devices known as power semiconductor devices operatingwith relatively large electric power, it is an important problem as tohow the heat generated by the semiconductor elements are efficientlyconducted and dissipated to the outside under a sufficient withstandvoltage characteristic.

Therefore, hitherto, the so-called a semiconductor device composed of alead frame has been known, in which device the lead frame is used as acircuit conductor and one or more of power semiconductor elements is/aremounted on one surface of the lead frame and then a base substrate madefrom a metal having excellent thermal conductivity is joined to theother surface of the lead frame via a resin insulating layer, which isdesigned for realizing the compatibility between high dielectricwithstanding voltage and low thermal resistance characteristics.

FIG. 8 shows an example of this semiconductor device composed of thelead frame, which is disclosed in JP-A-11-42663. As shown therein, alead frame 13 is used, which frame is formed substantially integrallyfrom a conductor plate of copper, etc. having a uniform thickness. Thislead frame 13 is adhered to one surface (a top side surface) of a metalbase substrate 15 via an insulating layer 18, whereby the lead frame canplay a role as a pattern of the conductor on a usual circuit board.

A predetermined end portion of the lead frame 13 is bent so that itstands up generally perpendicularly from the bonding surface of the basesubstrate 15 and thus an outward guided terminal portion 17 is formed.The outward guided terminal portion 17 and one or more of powersemiconductor elements 11 are electrically connected with each other tothe lead frame 13 by mounting the power semiconductor elements 11 on thelead frame 13, and necessary portions are connected with each other byan aluminum bonding wire 16, whereby necessary circuits such as the maincircuit, etc. of a power converter are formed.

The reason why the lead frame 13 is bent perpendicularly to the surfaceof the base substrate 15 is to keep an insulation distance from the basesubstrate 15.

At the same time, for the same reason, the bending position of the leadframe 13 comes inward from an end surface of the base substrate 15toward the center thereof (right direction).

The lead frame 13 is adhered to the one surface (a top surface) of thebase substrate 15 via the thin insulating layer 18 and, therefore, theheat generated by the power semiconductor elements 11 are conducted tothe base substrate 15 via the insulating layer 18, thereby ensuring thedissipation of heat. Therefore, this base substrate 15 is fabricatedfrom a metal plate composing a metal such as aluminum and copper, whichare excellent in thermal conductivity.

The insulating layer 18 serves to adhere the lead frame 13 to the basesubstrate 15 and serves the function of physically spacing both apartand electrically insulating therebetween with each other. For thisreason, the insulating layer 18 is made from a thermosetting resin suchas an epoxy resin having a glassy-transition temperature of not lessthan 100° C. and this material is used in the form of a resin sheet.

A molded outer package (not shown) is adhered to the base substrate 15by an adhesive or the like, in which package a resin such as an epoxyresin is filled. Thus, the remaining portion on the lead frame 13 exceptfor the terminal portion 17 extending perpendicularly from the bondingsurface of the lead frame 13 to the surface of the insulating layer 18,and one or more of power semiconductor elements 11 mounted thereon bybonding with a solder layer 26 are encapsulated, whereby a semiconductordevice is completed.

In the above prior art, no consideration is given to the fact theterminal portion of the lead frame stands up from the bonding surface ofthe lead frame to be fixedly adhered to the surface of the insulatinglayer and, therefore, it is a problem that manufacturing process becomescomplicated.

Normally, according to the prior art, if a semiconductor device inwhich, as shown in FIG. 8, the terminal portion 17 stands up generallyperpendicularly from the bonding surface of the lead frame to be fixedlyadhered to the surface of the base substrate, it is necessary to formthe lead frame in such a manner that the terminal portion is bentbeforehand and then to adhere this bent lead frame to the basesubstrate.

This is because a lead frame placed on the surface of the base substratein an unbent state generally comes into contact with the insulatinglayer including the outward guided terminal portion and fixedly adheresthereto, with the result that it becomes difficult to bend the leadframe later.

A manufacturing process of semiconductor devices in accordance with theprior art will be described as shown in FIGS. 9(a) to 9(c).

First of all, as shown in FIG. 9(a), a lead frame 13 is prepared, whichframe is bent beforehand so as to form an outward guided terminalportion 17. This lead frame 13 is placed on the surface of a basesubstrate 15 with an insulation resin sheet 18′ for insulative adhesioninterposed therebetween, and is then heated under pressure to therebyobtain the state shown in FIG. 9(b). The resin sheet 18′ sets hard andthereafter forms an insulating layer 18. As a result, the lead frame 13is fixedly adhered to the surface of the base substrate 15.

Next, similarly as shown in FIG. 9(b), solder printing treatmentnecessary for the formation of a solder layer 26 is exerted on thesurface of the lead frame 13 for mounting one or more of thesemiconductor elements 11 thereon. Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 9(c),the semiconductor elements 11 are superimposed on the solder layer 26and the semiconductor elements 11 are joined to the lead frame 13 byheating under pressure. After that, a predetermined wiring is performedby means of a bonding wire 16.

In the prior art, however, there arose the following problems in thesesteps and thus the manufacturing process was obliged to becomecomplicated as mentioned above.

The outward guided terminal portion 17 stands up from the lead frame 13and, therefore, first of all, in the step of FIG. 9(a), it is necessaryto prevent the interference (i.e., the collision) of the outward guidedterminal portion 17 with a compression press and the like. This leads toan increase in equipment size and hence an increase in the amount ofinvestment.

Next, in the step of FIG. 9(b), a mask and a squeegee for solder layerprinting interfere with the outward guided terminal portion 17.Therefore, it is difficult to perform solder printing treatment forforming the solder layer 26 on the lead frame 13 and techniques such asscreen printing cannot be applied thereto.

Further, in the step of FIG. 9(c), the outward guided terminal portion17 stands a great physical difficulties to the operating range ofmounting equipment necessary for mounting parts on the lead frame 13 andit is difficult to solve this problem with a usual mounting equipment.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The object of the present invention is to provide a semiconductor devicecomposed of a lead frame in which the possibility of a complicatedmanufacturing process is prevented and a reduction in manufacturing costcan be satisfactorily achieved.

The above object is achieved by providing a semiconductor device inwhich a lead frame fixedly adhered via an insulating layer to onesurface of a base substrate serves as a circuit conductor and on whichframe one or more of semiconductors are mounted so as to bend an endportion of said lead frame in a stand-up direction from the bondingsurface of the lead frame to be fixedly adhered to the surface of saidbase substrate as an outward guided terminal portion, wherein, in aportion of the lead frame, there is formed a recessed portion whosethickness is reduced from the bonding surface of the lead frame to befixedly adhered to the surface of the base substrate and the lead frameis bent at this recessed portion having a reduced thickness.

The stand-up position of the lead frame from the surface of the basesubstrate may be spaced apart by a predetermined specific distance froman end surface of the base substrate. A curved portion following astraight portion may also be formed in a stand-up portion of the leadframe from the surface of the base substrate.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a sectional view illustrative of a first embodiment of asemiconductor device according to the present invention,

FIGS. 2(a) to 2(d) are explanatory diagrams of a manufacturing processof the semiconductor device according to the present invention,

FIG. 3 is a sectional view illustrative of a second embodiment of thesemiconductor device according to the present invention,

FIG. 4 is a sectional view illustrative of a third embodiment of asemiconductor device according to the present invention,

FIG. 5 is a sectional view illustrative of a fourth embodiment of asemiconductor device according to the present invention,

FIG. 6 is a top plan view illustrative of the fourth embodiment of thesemiconductor device according to the present invention,

FIG. 7 is a circuit diagram illustrative of the fourth embodiment of thesemiconductor device according to the present invention,

FIG. 8 is a sectional view illustrative of an example of a semiconductordevice according to the prior art, and

FIGS. 9(a) to FIG. 9(c) are explanatory diagrams of a manufacturingprocess of the semiconductor device according to the prior art.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Semiconductor device according to the present invention will bedescribed below in further detail with reference to the accompanyingdrawings.

FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment of a semiconductor device according tothe present invention. In this figure, one or more of powersemiconductor elements 11, a lead frame 13, a base substrate 15, abonding wire 16, an outward guided terminal portion 17 and a solderlayer 26 are the same prior art semiconductor device as described inFIG. 8.

More specifically, the terminal that is guided to outside the package ofthe semiconductor device as the outward guided terminal portion 17 isextended on the base substrate 15 inside the package to form the leadframe 13. This lead frame 13 is fixedly adhered to the base substrate 15with the insulating layer 18 interposed therebetween, and the powersemiconductor elements 11 are directly joined to the lead frame 13 viathe solder layer 26.

The lead frame 13 and the power semiconductor elements 11 are eachelectrically connected by the bonding wire 16 represented by an aluminumwire to form a predetermined circuit.

As described in connection with the prior art, the direction to whichthe lead frame 13 is to be guided as the outward guided terminal portion17 must be perpendicular to the surface of the base substrate 15 inorder to ensure a necessary insulation distance and, for this reason,the position where the lead frame 13 is perpendicularly (upwarddirection) bent must be spaced inside by a distance of not less than d4from an end surface of the base substrate 15 toward the center direction(right direction) of the base substrate 15.

The distance d4 from an end surface of the base substrate 15 isdetermined by a voltage applied between the lead frame 13 and the basesubstrate 15 and is primarily determined by dielectric withstand voltagecharacteristic required for the semiconductor device.

Therefore, the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 differs from that of the priorart shown in FIG. 8 in that the lead frame 13 includes portions eachhaving different thicknesses of d1 and d2, respectively. The thicknessof the lead frame 13 is adapted to be d1 (fixedly adhered portion) in aportion where the lead frame 13 is fixedly adhered to the base substrate15 with the insulating layer 18 interposed therebetween while thethickness of the lead frame is adapted to be d2 in another portion 130of the lead frame 13 where the lead frame 13 is bent in order to formthe outward guided terminal portion 17, wherein the relationshiptherebetween is d1>d2 and this portion 130 having a reduced thickness isformed on the lead frame 13 in a manner such that the thickness isreduced from the bonding surface of the lead frame 13 which is fixedlyadhered to the base substrate 15 via the insulating layer 18. Theabove-mentioned features are essential to the present invention.

In other words, the lead frame 13 of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1differs from the prior art in that it is formed with the portion 130having a reduced thickness, and in that the lead frame 13 is bent inthis portion 130 to form the outward guided portion 17 in aperpendicular standing upright position.

In this embodiment, the lead frame 13 on which this portion 130 isformed beforehand is superimposed on the insulating layer 18 in a flatstate and is fixedly adhered to the base substrate 15. After themounting of parts, the lead frame 13 is perpendicularly bent at apredetermined position of the base substrate 15 to thereby form theoutward guided terminal portion 17.

In this case, however, if the lead frame 13 including the portion to bebent is completely adhered to the insulating layer 18 as in the priorart, on bending the lead frame 13 is stripped off from the insulatinglayer 18, with the result that the insulating layer 18 might be damaged.

In this embodiment, therefore, in order to form the outward guidedterminal portion 17, a longitudinally extending portion of the leadframe 13 is formed with the portion 130 having a reduced thickness. Withregard to the length d5, it is adapted to be longer than the distance d4necessary for insulation, that is, it is ensured that the relationshiptherebetween is held true to be d5>d4 and in addition to the above thelead frame 13 is adapted to be bent in this portion 130 when forming theoutward guided portion 17.

The portion 130 provided in the lead frame 13 is formed, as mentionedabove, on the lead frame 13 as a recessed portion from the surface onwhich the lead frame 13 is fixedly adhered to the base substrate 15. Forthis reason, even when the lead frame 13 is fixedly adhered to the basesubstrate 15 via the insulating layer 18 as it is, the lead frame 13 isspaced apart at a predetermined distance from the insulating layer 18 inthis portion 130 and works so that it keeps a state in which the leadframe 13 is not fixedly adhered to the base substrate 15 in this portion130.

Therefore, according to this embodiment, even when after fixedlyadhereing the lead frame 13 to the surface of the base substrate 15 in aflat state via the insulating layer 18, this lead frame 13 isperpendicularly bent to thereby form the outward guided terminal portion17, it can be ensured that there is no possibility of damage to theinsulating layer 18 at all.

Next, a part of a manufacturing process of the semiconductor deviceaccording to the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 will be described withreference to FIGS. 2(a) to 2(d).

First of all, as shown in FIG. 2(a), the lead frame 13 having a reducedthickness portion 130 is prepared and superimposed on the base substrate15 in a flat state with the resin sheet 18′ interposed therebetween, andthe lead frame 13 is fixedly adhered to the base substrate 15 by heatingunder pressure after predetermined positioning, whereby as shown in FIG.2(b), the lead frame 13 in a flat state is adapted to be fixedly adheredto the base substrate 15 via the insulating layer 18.

The level difference between the bottom of the recessed portion of theportion 130 and the surface of the insulating layer 18, i.e., thedifference between the original thickness d1 of the lead frame 13 andthe thickness d2 of the portion 130 (=d1−d2) should generally be about0.1 to 0.2 mm. However, this level difference is not limited to theabove numerical values and may be arbitrarily determined according tothe thickness of the lead frame 13 and specifications for the insulatinglayer 18.

Furthermore, with regard to the length d5 of the portion 130, thecondition that it is longer than the above distance d4 required forinsulation, i.e., the relationship therebetween of d5>d4 may bepreferably kept. The portion 130 is not restricted to be formed in onlythe peripheral end portion of the base substrate 15 and but may beextended to the leading end of the outward guided terminal portion 17.Therefore, the dimensional conditions necessary for the lead frame 13are d1>d2 and d4<d5.

Next, similarly as shown in FIG. 2(b), a predetermined portion of thelead frame 13, i.e., the portion on which one or more of powersemiconductor elements are mounted is subjected to solder printingtreatment necessary for the formation of the solder layer 26 and afterthat, as shown in FIG. 2(c), the semiconductor elements 11 arepositioned. Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 2(d), the semiconductorelements 11 are joined to the lead frame 13 via the solder layer 26 andwiring is then performed by means of the bonding wire 16.

After that, an end portion of the lead frame 13 (left side end) is heldby means of a predetermined jig from the upper side in the figure sothat the lead frame 13 is not stripped off from the insulating layer 18and then, as indicated by the arrow A in FIG. 2(c), the outward guidedterminal portion 17 is formed by standing the lead frame 13 up generallyperpendicularly to the surface of the base substrate 15, whereby asemiconductor device in a state shown in FIG. 1 can be obtained.

In the case of this embodiment, when the lead frame 13 is fixedlyadhered to the base substrate 15 via the insulating layer 18, the leadframe 13 is superimposed in a flat state on the insulating layer 18 andthere are no any obstacles on the surface of the lead frame 13.

Therefore, according to this embodiment, it is possible to apply screenprinting treatment by a screen mask and a squeegee without anydifferences from the solder printing treatment for the surface of anordinary printed circuit board. As a result of this, the reliability ofa power semiconductor device can be satisfactorily improved by theapplication of screen printing, which facilitates the control of variousconditions such as layer thickness, shape, etc. in solder applicationtreatment.

Furthermore, for this reason, the interference by the stand-up portionof the lead frame 13 does not occur during the mounting of parts or wirebonding. Therefore, according to this embodiment, the limitation forvarious kinds of equipment to be used in the assembling steps shown inFIGS. 2(a) to 2(d) can be minimized and hence a cost rise can beefficiently reduced.

In the case of this embodiment, it is possible to locate the bendingposition of the lead frame 13 at an arbitrary position in the portion130 and, therefore, the lead frame 13 can be easily stood up from thearbitrary position inward from an end surface of the base substrate 15.

In addition, because the lead frame 13 may have a flat shape as it is,this lead frame 13 is excellent in the loading efficiency and is easy tobe fixedly adhered and enables the quality during transportation to beeasily ensured. Furthermore, when the lead frame 13 is fixedly adheredto the insulating layer 18, the size of press equipment can beminimized. This is advantageous for reducing the costs for equipment andin terms of working cost when the lead frame 13 is fixedly adhered.

Furthermore, because the lead frame 13 in this embodiment can be easilystamped by press working, etc. and is flat, it can be manufactured bythe etching process in the same way as with an ordinary printed circuitboard and does not require special manufacturing techniques.

Incidentally, with regard to the size d3 in FIG. 1, the relationship ofd3=d1 is a basis as mentioned above. However, there is no specialdimensional limitation. Therefore, the relationship of d3=d2 is allowedand other plate thicknesses may be used.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be describedwith reference to FIG. 3.

In a semiconductor device, there is provided a device in which itsterminals may be led out from a peripheral portion of the package andthe embodiment shown in FIG. 3 is applied to this type of semiconductordevice. Therefore, the second embodiment shown in FIG. 3 differs fromthe first embodiment shown in FIG. 1 in that the outward guided terminalportion 17 firstly stands up perpendicularly upwardly to the basesubstrate 15 and then bent again at a position by the distance d5 spacedfrom an end surface of the base substrate 15 and is finally led outhorizontally to the base substrate 15.

The distance d5 is provided, as mentioned above, in order to keep apredetermined insulation distance from the base substrate 15 and itsvalue is determined by a voltage applied to the lead frame 13. However,once the distance d5 is obtained, there is no limitation to the bendingdirection or the number of bending of the leading end of the lead frame13. Therefore, the lead frame 13 may be led out as the outward guidedterminal portion 17 so that the lead frame 13 can be ultimately handledwith ease as a product.

Therefore, the adoption of this embodiment shown in FIG. 3 also enablesthe reliability of a power semiconductor device to be satisfactorilyimproved and a cost rise to be efficiently reduced. Thus, the sameeffects as with the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 can be obtained from theembodiment shown in FIG. 3.

Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described withreference to FIG. 4.

The third embodiment shown in FIG. 4 differs from the first embodimentshown in FIG. 1 in that the position in which the perpendicular bendingof the lead frame 13 is started is not at one end c of the portion 130,but at a point between the one end c and the end surface a of the basesubstrate 15, and in that after a non-bent portion dx is providedbetween the above one end c and a midway point b, the lead frame 13 isperpendicularly upwardly bent while forming a curved portion R from thispoint b to thereby form the outward guided terminal portion 17.

Therefore, the adoption of this embodiment shown in FIG. 4 also enablesthe reliability of a power semiconductor device to be sufficientlyimproved and a cost rise to be efficiently reduced. Thus, the sameeffects as with the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 can be obtained from theembodiment shown in FIG. 4. In addition, because the non-bent portion dxprovides a clearance portion during the bending of the lead frame 13,the bonding surface can be positively held by means of a jig and thelead frame 13 can be gently bent in the curved portion R. The shape andsize of the above non-bent portion dx and curved portion R can beselectively changed as required.

Next, a fourth embodiment of the present invention applied to asemiconductor device for a power converter will be described withreference to FIGS. 5 to 7.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the semiconductor device, the view beingtaken along line A-A′ of FIG. 6, FIG. 6 is a top plan view of thesemiconductor device before sealing with a resin, and FIG. 7 is acircuit diagram of the semiconductor device.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 5 to 7, a main circuit including one ormore of power semiconductor elements 11 are composed of a lead frame 13,and an integrated circuit 23, such as a driver IC for driving the powersemiconductor elements 11, and a peripheral control circuit part 22 areintegrally mounted on a printed circuit board 21.

The main circuit is provided with an outward guided terminal 17 formedby bending the lead frame 13, the printed circuit board 21 is providedwith a control terminal 24, and all mounted parts are housed in aresin-molded outer package and integrally sealed with a resin sealingagent 32. The numeral 31 in FIG. 6 indicates a mounting hole.

In the case of this embodiment, the arrangement of the printed circuitboard 21 and mounted parts within the semiconductor device is mere apart of the arrangement as a semiconductor device. Therefore, byconnecting various printed circuit boards for a power supply portion,control portion, communication portion, display portion, etc. not shownin addition to this arrangement, it is possible to arrange asemiconductor device as a power converter and all the more higher levelsystem.

According to the present invention, it is possible to obtain the effectsenumerated below:

(1) Because the lead frame in a flat state can be fixedly adhered to theinsulating layer, the solder layer can be formed by the screen printingmethod, with the result that cost reduction can be achieved and, at thesame time, the quality control and reliability of the semiconductordevice can be enhanced.

(2) For the same reason, also for mounting parts on the lead frame, itcan be ensured that there are no obstacles to various mounts such as adie bonder and the like. Therefore, there is little apprehension thatmounting conditions might be limited and hence productivity increases.

(3) Because the lead frame can be bent in an arbitrary position duringthe formation of the outward guided terminal, the position in which theoutward guided terminal is led out can be arbitrarily selected and therange to which the semiconductor device is applicable becomes wide.

(4) Because the lead frame itself is a two-dimensionally shaped one, theloading efficiency during transportation can be improved.

(5) It is possible to reduce the size of equipment necessary for fixedlyadhering the lead frame under pressure.

What is claimed:
 1. A power converter comprising: a power supplyportion; a control portion; and a semiconductor device in which a leadframe fixedly adhered via an insulating layer to one surface of a basesubstrate serves as a circuit conductor and on which frame one or morepower semiconductor elements are mounted, wherein an end portion of saidlead frame is bent to form a stand-up portion in a stand-up directionfrom the surface of said base substrate as an outward guided terminal,wherein the lead frame has a first thickness in a first portion fixedlyadhered to the surface of the base substrate, and wherein the lead framehas a recessed portion having a second thickness, less than the firstthickness, said recessed portion being formed in a lower portion of thestand-up portion beginning adjacent to said first portion and extendingupwardly along said stand-up portion.
 2. The power converter accordingto claim 1, wherein the stand-up portion of the lead frame from thesurface of the base substrate is spaced inwardly apart by apredetermined specific distance from an end surface of the basesubstrate.
 3. The power converter according to claim 2, wherein saidrecessed portion includes a first recessed portion extending in adirection of the surface of the base substrate and spaced apart from thebase substrate, a second recessed portion extending in the stand-updirection along the stand-up portion, and a curved recessed portionwhich extends between the first recessed portion and the second recessedportion, wherein the curved recessed portion curves from the directionof the surface of the base substrate to the stand-up direction.
 4. Thepower converter according to claim 2, wherein the recessed portionbegins at a bend point at which said lead frame beings to bend in thestand-up direction, wherein said bend point is immediately adjacent tosaid first portion of said lead frame.
 5. The power converter accordingto claim 1, wherein the recessed portion begins at a bend point at whichsaid lead frame begins to bend in the stand-up direction, wherein saidbend point is immediately adjacent to said first portion of said leadframe.